If this is your first visit, be sure to
check out the FAQ by clicking the
link above. You may have to register
before you can post: click the register link above to proceed. To start viewing messages,
select the forum that you want to visit from the selection below.

Football is a team sport. As a result it would be impossible to find any one single cause for a disappointing season.

There are several factors that contributed to the pathetic and underachieving season for the Steelers....injuries, coaching, turn-overs, penalities, solar flares, etc...but to say the Steelers sucked soley because of Mike Tomlin in unrealistic.

However as the head coach, he must shoulder some of the responsibility. Head coaches don't play on the field but they do prepare their players to play and coaches to coach. That preparation has some impact to the outcome of the game...After all the players still need to execute on the field.

In any case, there are several factors that can be used to determine a coaches effectiveness...Won/Loss record, team discipline, penalites, turn-overs, in-game adjustments, clock management, etc...everyone is going to have an off game here and there, but when certain trends continue on for an entire season or longer at some point the HC needs to be accountable.

There were definitely some disturbing trends this season and the team (including the coaches) need to share the burden.

If we are going to crown a HC as one of the greats after winning a couple of SBs, then we need to hold him responsible when times are tough....

Tomlin had the worst year of his coaching stint and it wasn't because of the players turning over the ball or committing stupid penalties or was it the in game decisions. Where he failed was the off the field decision that cost him games in the long run.
1)Cutting Saunders over Paulson and Pope
2)Not starting his best back in Rashard
3)firing the St coach and replacing him with trash
4)hiring an OC that didn't fit his offense
5) keeping two washed up Back up Qbs
Those moves alone maybe caused the team at least 2-3 losses on its own.

These players didn't just start playing football no one can hold their hands and make them hold on to the ball or not to throw interceptions let alone jumping off side or holding. Those things are learned and taught before they enter the league so you can't blame that on the coaches they are Paid to perform period and they didn't.

Tomlin had the worst year of his coaching stint and it wasn't because of the players turning over the ball or committing stupid penalties or was it the in game decisions. Where he failed was the off the field decision that cost him games in the long run.
1)Cutting Saunders over Paulson and Pope
2)Not starting his best back in Rashard
3)firing the St coach and replacing him with trash
4)hiring an OC that didn't fit his offense
5) keeping two washed up Back up Qbs
Those moves alone maybe caused the team at least 2-3 losses on its own.

I'm trying to figure out where these 2-3 losses came from on your list

1) I'm a Saunders fan but he didn't exactly set the league on fire in Indy. This certainly played no part in any of our losses
2) I'm pretty sure Mendenhall started as soon as he was ready. He lost that position by putting the ball on the ground. The mistake was playing Mendenhall ... not sitting him.
3) We have to assume the ST coach gave Tomlin no option but to fire him. Tomlin doesn't impress me as a knee jerk reactionary type of coach.
4) I loved what this offense was doing until Ben got hurt. It was improving every week, controlling the ball and converting 3rd downs. It seemed to be getting better scoring touchdowns from the redzone. Ben was mentioned as a MVP candidate. Between the injuries on the O-line and Ben the offense went downhill but I don't pin those losses on Haley.
5) Do you really think a rookie QB could have come in and won games when Ben got hurt? Nope, that wasn't happening.

Now if you would have put on your list the undisciplined way that the Steelers played this year I could agree that cost us a couple of games. For instance, why, when we have a questionable play, don't we rush up to the line and get a play off instead of letting the opposition review the play and throw a challenge flag? How friggin hard is it to not block someone in the back? How can gunners not know that they can't willingly run out of bounds and if they are knocked out of bounds they have to get back in bounds? Why don't our ball carriers know that they have to put both hands on the ball when running through traffic?

I blame Tomlin, and all the coaches, for these things. Not for what you listed.

Miller has a career year under Haley and had his best stats ever except receptions (which he probably would have gotten in the last game) and that was with having to stay in and block all the time b/c of a patchwork line. Haley sure as hell understood what kind of weapon he had there. And Haley was nothing but professional all year as WR's dropped ball after ball, the RB's fumbled games away, and the line had trouble generating any sort of push for a running game most of the time.

I think you are heavily indulging in a controlled substance. LeBeau has changed his defense the last 2 or 3 years! It looks way different then when he blitzed every other play. He has ran a defense to try and control the passing attacks of todays NFL. Fast paced quick throws 2 or 3 step drops! No blitz will get there when good QB's throw quick passes most of the time. So play coverage and limit YAC.

Did LeBeau really change it for the better? Thirteen other teams in the NFL had more sacks than we did and eighteen had more INTs. Do they play in a different NFL than we do or are their Def Coords more adaptable with what they do and how they gameplan? The "fast paced quick throws 2 or 3 step drops" seem a little less difficult for them to deal with.

I'm trying to figure out where these 2-3 losses came from on your list

1) I'm a Saunders fan but he didn't exactly set the league on fire in Indy. This certainly played no part in any of our losses
2) I'm pretty sure Mendenhall started as soon as he was ready. He lost that position by putting the ball on the ground. The mistake was playing Mendenhall ... not sitting him.
3) We have to assume the ST coach gave Tomlin no option but to fire him. Tomlin doesn't impress me as a knee jerk reactionary type of coach.
4) I loved what this offense was doing until Ben got hurt. It was improving every week, controlling the ball and converting 3rd downs. It seemed to be getting better scoring touchdowns from the redzone. Ben was mentioned as a MVP candidate. Between the injuries on the O-line and Ben the offense went downhill but I don't pin those losses on Haley.
5) Do you really think a rookie QB could have come in and won games when Ben got hurt? Nope, that wasn't happening.

Now if you would have put on your list the undisciplined way that the Steelers played this year I could agree that cost us a couple of games. For instance, why, when we have a questionable play, don't we rush up to the line and get a play off instead of letting the opposition review the play and throw a challenge flag? How friggin hard is it to not block someone in the back? How can gunners not know that they can't willingly run out of bounds and if they are knocked out of bounds they have to get back in bounds? Why don't our ball carriers know that they have to put both hands on the ball when running through traffic?

I blame Tomlin, and all the coaches, for these things. Not for what you listed.

Remember a lot of games was lost by 3 pts or less, how many times was Paulson shoved in Ben Lap while blocking you can go back to the pass that were called a lateral and see Paulson at his best.
The St unit sucked this year after finally having a good year last year, how many times did the offense start in bad field position all year.
Mendenhall is clearly the most talented back by far.
This team is built on speed, going to a dink and dink offense made it easier to defend.
The decision to keep a fragile qb and another that was close to 40 along with a injury proned starting qb, and it didn't have to be a rookie but someone more reliable.